A Digital Product to inspire independence & freedom

We bucked convention to create the world’s first independent search engine, inspired by the Sol brand’s story of freedom and the mandate to make the brand truly useful in the lives of its target consumers – SolSearch.com

Brand Strategy

Sol was first brewed in Mexico in 1899, in the midst of the Mexican Revolution. This free-spirited streak remains a strong part of the brand’s DNA today – Sol’s brand sign off is ‘Espiritu Libre’, and all of their messaging evokes the possibility of limitless exploration

Digital product strategy

Armed with the insight that adventurous Googlers sometimes start from page ten, thereby ensuring they start with less mainstream and potentially more random results, we set out to develop the world’s first independent search engine that would encourage Sol’s consumers to discover a world beyond the ordinary.

“What if we could make Search less stale and more about Discovery?”

The concept was so powerful that leading publishers like Monocle reached out to forge partnerships – this ensured the very best in content for the platform.

Design Solution

We wanted to distance Sol Search from Google and all other search engines. We defined a visual language that promoted discovery. A key difference from other search engines is that Sol Search works based on what users think is best – it is behaviorally driven.

As well as details that are the norm during online search, the system pulls real images and people’s comments into its results. This risks being cluttered so design simplification is key.

SUMMARY

We delivered a tool that has real value in the daily lives of our target audience and ensures that Sol is top of mind for discovery of new experiences. Our creed in this exercise: “Be real and be useful if we want that bar call to be Sol.” That mantra has struck a note with Sol consumers. After launching in London, Sao Paulo, Athens, Thessaloniki, Mexico City and Riviera Maya, Sol Search has demonstrated powerful brand and online KPI movements.

Our experiment with an independent internet worked; the results speak for themselves: